The sand in the night
by Palasaraptor
Summary: Sanderson Hawkins is plagued by nightmares of murders yet to be committed. As Sandman he must break in the a building in New York and stop his terrible dream from coming true.


**The sand in the night**

Wes once told me something important. He said _Sandy my boy, this gift I'm passing to you will be a curse to you and a blessing to others. _I now know what he meant. My name is Sanderson Hawkins, but right now, standing up on this roof, staring up at this skyscraper, in this mask and trench coat, I'm called the Sandman.

I prep the wire-harpoon gun (Wirepoon for short) like I've done a hundred times, aim up and the top of the building and fire. The gun gives a hiss as it launches the grapple for the roof, catching one of those U hooks window washers use for there rigs. I switch the Wirepoon gun to "coil" and place a hand on my hat, this was the fun part. With a jolt forward and up, the gun dose it job and I'm silently whisked to the top of the tower. The night air is cool on my neck as I fly up the wall of glass and metal. They like to build them big in New York.

I get to the top and use the momentum the swing myself to the roof, then holstered the wirepoon gun behind me back and checked my watch. "Damn!" I whispered through me teeth. Was it already 10:30? I must be slipping, but not being able to sleep for three night will do that to anyone. The nightmares, the murders, the crimes, the violence, that's all I ever seen when i close my eye to rest, till it ether happens for real or I stop it for real. I have to nail this guy there's no choice. Maybe then I can get some sleep.

I pull out my Gasgun check it's canister, it's full. Good, I don't need any unwelcome surprises tonight. I check the roof for alarm systems and find none. Somehow I'm not surprised, But then again Vic always did do good detective work, but I'll never tell him that. I move to the roof access door and go to open it. _Wait!_ I think to myself. The doors are always alarm on offices this late at night. I need another way in. I then spot the air ducts leading in to the ventilation system for the building. That will do just fine. With a thought my body starts to change, to melt, as ever part of me even the cloths turns in to thousands of gains of sand. Not even Wes could pull a trick like this.

Now I was in, but i didn't know the ventilation plans for he building, I would have to do this the hard way. Finding a dark room I empty my self out of the ducts and on to the floor, then I reform my carbon based body. My target was on the 13th floor, this i could get from the nightmares as well as a rough time line, but where was I? Moving quietly to the door I peeked out the window and spotted a stairway. 15, it read. "Damn." I said again, I needed to find a way down. The air ducts where useless, I could get lost in there for hours and then it would be to late. The stairs are no good ether, there's to much light the security cameras could spot me, even in my sand form. The elevator it is then, the security would be doing there rounds at this time of night, if I moved quickly no one would notice.

I opened the door to proceed with my plan but froze as i hard to sound of talking. Night guards. Two of them, rounding to far corner to my right. I quickly and quietly shut the door and hope nether had seen. "Hey, did that door just close?" one of them said. I held my breath, trying to listen more closely. "I didn't see it." said the second guard. "You think you saw something?" he ask and they began to make for the door, there flashlights fixed on the window. _Damn! _It was a thought this time not a word, as i did a crouching run for one of the cubical on the far side of the room. I ducked in just as the door opened. I readied my Gasgun and held my breath again. "You sure you saw the door close?" The second guard asked as they scanned the room lazily from the door. "I mean, I think I did." Said the first guard, his sounded tiered. "Man, you're so beat you're seeing things." The second guard said. "Come on we'll take ten and get some coffee." The door closed and the voices faded. No one had to see me. Not yet.

I waited a good a minute to make sure they where gone and went for the door again. It was quite. Good.I went down left side of the hallway, hugging the wall, Gasgun at the ready, listening for anymore sound as i reached the elevator and pressed the down button. I waited, and waited, they always do take forever when your in a hurry. It was already 10:55, if I was not in his office by 11:13 it would be to late. The elevator dinged and then open, and three perplexed guards where staring me in the face. "Evening, fellas." I said as i entered the lift. "Could you hit 13 please?" I said as the doors closed.

The time for stealth was over. Before they could reach there stun-guns i pulled the trigger on my Gasgun. I had the advantage, weapon was out, pointed as the floor and in a confined space, perfect for maximum dispensation. The elevator quickly filled with knockout gas and the choked coughs of the guards. "You guys look tiered, why don't take a quick nap while the boss is away." The elevator dinged, the doors opened and I sprinted down the hall. They must have seen that on the monitors, and would be coming for me. Not much farther now the office was down the hall, then left, right then the fifth door on the left. _Damn they make these building big. _11:10. I had to get there. Down the hall and turned left. I have to stop this man. Turned right. He most not be allowed. Fifth door on the left.

I burst into the office. The chair behind a very large, mahogany desk turns. The man in the chair is an older, African-American man, with piecing eyes, grey sideburns and, to my surprise, a pleasant smile on his face. "Well now." He said calmly, placing the paper work neatly on his desk. "This is a surprise." "Lucius Fox?" I ask through the mask. The man nobs, his smile never leaving his lips. "Yes, that would be me." He places his elbows on the desk, leaning forward and placing his hands together below his chin. "And what can i do for you?" Guards poured into the hall behind me, stun-guns at the ready. "Mr. Fox?" The captain shouts. "Are you alright sir?" Lucius calmly nods once more. "Yes, I'm quite alright, Captain. I'm just wondering how our masked friend here got in to a Wayne Tech secured building so easily."

"Mr. Fox." I said. "Your life is in danger, you need to come with me n-" The beep of my watch interrupts me. Times up. You know when people say when things happen to fast it's like it was in slow-mo? That's exactly what was happening. First, a red dot appeared on Lucius' left shoulder. I track the beam with my eyes and see it leads out the window, to the next building, where a lone man, in a silver and red getup, with a silver mask, a red scope over his right eye, holds a very large rocket launcher. _Deadshot. _I realize, he was the murderer. Then the launcher ignites and the rocket comes whizzing towards the office. "Get down!" I shout and lounge for Mr. Fox, knocking him to the ground. No time to move, have to improvise. And then the rocket broke the glass and exploded.

The smock clears, and the guards are on there feet with no serious injuries, they where smart to have stayed outside of the now smouldering room. "Mr. Fox?" one of the guards shouts. The ceiling was partially collapsed and doorway was blocked "Are you in there? Are you alright? Mr. Fox?" The aged man pushes some desk remains off of him self, coughing as he gets his barrings on the situation. "I'm alright!" He looked around and saw no one else in the room. "Oh dear." He said grimly. "Young man?" He called out with a touch of desperation in his voice. "Where are you?" He started digging through the rubble but found nothing.

"I'm all right!" I called back as soon as my body had formed a mouth and throat again, as the sand came together to reconstruct me. "But I definitely don't want to do that again." Moments before the rocket hit, I managed to pull the desk over me and Lucius, then I formed a barrier of sand around him and hardened it to be tough as rock. I burst back in to sand just after the explosive force but it did its job well enough. "Astounding!" Said Lucius looking at me in amazement. "You can just turn in to sand with a-" But I had to cut him off. "Hold that thought, Mr. Fox." Deadshot was making his get away.

I pull my Wirepoon gun and grapple up to the next building. He needed to make sure the kill was clean, or he wouldn't get his pay, now that he knew he had failed, he made his exit, no doubt to try again later. He was half way to the end of the building when i got up there. "You took your shot and missed, now its my turn." I exclaimed. He turn, but rather then rebuttal, he flicked his left wrist and two gun barrels came out of his gauntlet and I dove for the cover of a ventilation unit as he fill the night with gun fire. "I expected someone to try and stop me." He stated. "But i wasn't expecting some relic like you." The ventilator was poor cover as the metal stared giving way to the barrage. I was to far to hit him with the gas, I needed to get closer somehow. And that's when I saw it, we were fighting on gravel. I focused my mind and the building began to shack, not violently but just enough.

The gun fire stop as Deadshot looked around, confused. "What the hell?" He exclaimed. That was all the opening I need. I stood up and raised both hands in front of me, palms down. The shacking had stop and Deadshot made ready his weapon again, but suddenly, with out warning, the gravel around our feet came alive. As I marched forward the pebbles cascaded and whirled and stormed around him. He tried to fight back, tried to shot at me with his wrist-guns but the gravel had jammed them and now they where just useless hunks of metal. He shouted in pain and surprise and tried to get away, but I morphed in to sand once more and cut him off. Desperate, and faceing overwhelming and confusing power, he panicked. "Get the hell away from me!" He turned and tried to run for the door, but I formed a bump in the gravel and he tripped, slamming his head ageist the structure.

With a groan, he rolled over and sat back, holding his head. I let the gravel storm subside and crouched down next to him, grabbing the scruff of his outfit, I hauled him up to his feet. "Not your best move, Dream boat." He spat and reached for a pistol on his belt. I slammed him ageist the door again and he went limp. I pulled the belt off him and tossed it aside. "Ouch! Alright! I give." He said flippantly. "Uncle." I got right up in his face and shouted. "You just tried to kill a man!" I was furious. "How can you be so casual?" This nightmare had plagued me for days, the bodies, the fire, the blood, and he was just acting like he got caught swiping lunch money. "Hey, I'm a hit man." He explained in a demeaning voice. "Can you blame a guy for trying to make a buck in this country?" I punched him in the jaw and dropped him to the floor, then I pull out the Gasgun and aimed at his face. "I'm Canadian." There was a hiss as I pulled the trigger.

The papers say they found him the next mourning, tied up, bruised, and snoring like a truck. They hauled him off to Strikers Island, but not before reading the poem I left him in the shape of a paper crane. It read,

" You now sleep in chains,

Your goals were a mistake,

May your buck fall short.

Sleep well: Sandman."

A little something for the papers, Wes thought me how important keeping up appearances is. The Wayne foundation, extended its gratitude towards the city of New York and Sandman. But honestly the best reward for me right now would be a peaceful nights sleep. Before this all starts up again. My name is Sanderson Hawkins, and I hope I'm not dreaming about you tonight.

**The End**


End file.
